"Come DIET With Me" - Where to eat???

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Permalink Reply by Sarah Jayne on January 4, 2010 at 7:52pm

Honestly, when I am doing best on my diet I eat at home. However, if I have to go out and to anywhere 'chain' I head for somehwere l like Nandos where the food is atleast slightly healthier than things that go into a deep fat fryer.

I have lost about 6 stone over the past two years (with many more to go) and really there is no substitute for doing it yourself at home since you can know exactly what went into it and how it was cooked. Then, when I have the rare day off the diet to go out to a restaurant I just enjoy wherever I end up without stressing.

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Permalink Reply by Sabrina Ghayour on January 4, 2010 at 9:43pm

Hi Sarah Jayne, WELL DONE YOU on losing so much weight! That is absolutely fantastic and i truly know how bloody hard it is, so i am in awe of your dedication. I have probably gained and lost my entire body weight since i was a teen! Its hard... I love Nandos and stick to the pitta with skinless chicken breast, no mayo, and rice and corn. Its great... But as someone who has to eat out a lot, i really truly get stuck trying to choose restaurants that would be good for my diet... Obviously Sushi is a great as its very low fat, but lucky for me, i love raw fish! Its not everyone's cup of tea!! Thanks for your input! Lets see what else people suggest!

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Permalink Reply by Matt Hall on January 5, 2010 at 8:12am

Yep, I was going to say Japanese too. I agree with Sarah though, that if you really want to know what's in your food it's best to cook at home.

I plan to get a little more in shape by running round our local park, just as soon as the ice melts and I'm not at risk of breaking my neck! Some light after 4pm would be handy too! grrr...

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Permalink Reply by Jenny on January 5, 2010 at 4:22pm

I think a big problem with restaurant food is that they do add a lot of butter, sugar and salt than the average home cook would - which is partially why a lot of it tastes better than what you make at home!

Another problem is the fetishistic labelling of certain foods as healthy. Sushi may be low fat, but it's quite high in salt, doesn't contain any fruit or veg portions (pickled ginger doesn't count!) and it can give you mercury poisoning if you eat it too often. No one type of food is good or bad, and your diet should be balanced. Cutting out certain foods for a short period might help you drop a few pounds, but unless you change your lifestyle long term you'll never keep the weight off.

My experience of low fat foods is generally negative - my flatmate would buy diet coke and low fat cream cheese, and then eat 3 or 4 times as much as she would have done of the full fat varieties. She didn't even get the satisfaction of it tasting good! You can also be sure that if you go to a menu determined to have some thing healthy, the temptation to eat something bad will be even stronger.

My family tends to put weight on easily, so it's always been something I've been wary of. Luckily I've never been too bad, but I still have those moments where I find some old clothes that I'd never get in to these days, or even better, when I find clothes that are now too big!

I don't restrict what I eat at all, but I only eat if I am hungry, and I stop when I'm full. If I'm a little bit hungry, I have a glass of water and then reassess. Last week we went for a curry, and I only ate half my food, I felt a bit bad about wasting the remains, but it was more important that I was full and shouldn't eat anymore. Next time I'm going to ask for a doggy bag!

I've been doing this for the last year or so, and I'm a dress size smaller than I was last Christmas. It might not be the best way to get rid of weight quickly, but I've found it a good way to watch what you eat without making lists of banned food.

Good luck everyone!

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Permalink Reply by Matt Hall on January 6, 2010 at 8:17am

I think your advice is spot on - especially about drinking a glass of water when you're hungry, as quite often it can be mistaken for being thirsty!

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Permalink Reply by Sabrina Ghayour on January 5, 2010 at 9:25pm

Matt - Thanks, you are right! But sometimes, you just dont have a choice... I usually have to eat out anywhere from 4-10 times a week and get bored of making sensible choices... But exercise is definitely right so you are spot on! I'm a bit exercise shy i'm afraid!

Jenny - Lots of fantastic advice there, i think you are right. I realise i have a diet coke addiction and either starve myself or go completely the other end of the spectrum. I'm working on it, but being so food involved can be tough! I think i have to try and stick to fish choices and although im concious of oil/butter in dishes, i guess i need to be extra vigilant!

Was watching Paul McKenna last night "I Can Make You Thin" and he says:

1) Eat when you are hungry
2) Eat conciously (i.e. not whilst watching tele)
3) Eat what you want (to prevent overdoing it)
4) When you think you are full, stop!

Pretty sensible really. Well done to you for adopting a similar approach! Losing a dress size is fantastic!!! I'm envious!!!

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Permalink Reply by emma williams on January 8, 2010 at 7:50pm

sabrina, I have no idea where to go to eat out home is best you should (haha) be able to control what goes in the pan (so says probably the worst gold member of weight watchers ) we all know what we should be eating ,its just that little bit of bitter ,olive oil .... that makes it taste that little bit finer .
ps did I see you on the F word last night ? we cant bear the programme and only watched because my brother in law was on but Ithought I recognised your name

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Permalink Reply by Kate the Bake on January 6, 2010 at 4:12pm

I'm with everyone else here, when i go out to eat, it is invariably for Japanese, low fat, healthy and just yum!
I never buy low-fat, sugar-free or diet foods either, and agree with Jenny that they are fairly valueless items.
I much prefer eating home-cooked food with lots of vegetables especially compared to visiting a chain restaurant (I guess Yo! is the exception to that though). Mostly I exercise hard so that I can eat what I want - the more I eat, the more I workout!
Good luck with your diet, Sabrina!

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Permalink Reply by Jackie Dyer on January 7, 2010 at 10:16pm

Completely agree with Kate the Bake. I can't be doing with silly diets and messing about. After all, it's the coldest, darkest month of the year. Don't we want to be eating comfort food? That means lots of vegetables, yes, and perhaps less meat . I really like to go for chilli-based dishes as that can be really refreshing and cleansing at this time of year - fish or vegetable curries, chilli-flavoured soups or fish/chicken tagines. All low in fat but tasty and warming. And then you can have a sneaky glass of wine too! But the big thing is to get out there and exercise, not easy in this chilly weather, so put on your favourite dance music and dance round the kitchen while you cook! Well, that's what I do and it seems to work.

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Permalink Reply by Sabrina Ghayour on January 9, 2010 at 10:23am

You are all so right. I have honestly abandoned low fat produce in favour of full fat... In fact, to be honest, i never even chose low fat produce. Low fat mayonnaise IS NOT MAYONNAISE! I find especially low fat dairy products are absolutely awful! My problem actually isnt the butter, cream etc... I just love eating! Lots and lots and when i get stressed out (and sometimes even bored) i eat mindlessly! Not savouring it and its a pain. Plus as you all know, being able to cook to satisfy a craving, is annoying... because no dish/cravingis out of reach. I do hate dieting. I lost 3 stone once on the Atkins, then ended up in hospital needing a gall bladder op, i lost 30lbs on Weight Watchers in 2008 and gained it all in 2009. The one eating plan that worked for me is the new Slimming world, only because it doesnt feel like a diet. I can eat everything! Except bread (well limited bread) and obviously not lots of oil/fats. BUT i'm not a lover of crisps, biscuits, chocolate snacking or processed food, so actually it kind of works for me. But i get a lot of requests to review restaurants, plus generally end up going out to lunch and dinner a lot and it freaks me out (secretly) because i know i wont be able to control myself! I think i have some mind-programming to do about making a sensible choice at the time. ANYWAY! All your advice is like fuel for my engine, its firing me up and getting me in the right frame of mind! I think i will have to try and stick to Eastern/Oriental and European style food with fish and lean meats as my number one choice for a while anyway... I can always re-introduce the naughty stuff later on!

Emma, yes, that was me on F-Word. I dont watch it normally either, but when they invited me on, i couldnt resist... !

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Permalink Reply by Uma Wylde on January 11, 2010 at 6:32pm

Well done to Sarah Jane!

I agree with what she says about staying in. Still in your line of work Sabrina that's not always possible, so what about Thai ? That would work. You could start off with a hot and sour soup followed by a Thai salad and chillies are good for speeding up the metabolism. Plus it's a brilliant combo for anyone wanting to drop weight.

I do the soup salad thingy each winter after christmas. I learnt it back in the day, 100's of years ago when I modelled swimwear and lingerie. We weren't allowed to eat!!! Seriously. Apart from a couple of naturally skinny girls the rest of us were on a permanent starvation diet of apples and coffee (also a good combo for sudden weight loss but not ideal in winter) but it does mean you can go and pig out at a restaurant afterwards and not feel bad.

Failing that go to your fave restaurants just avoid eating any carbs. Think Atkins Diet! And eat protein with impunity. I blogged about the subject last January (it was my first ever) so if you want more info about speeding up your metabolism and dieting in general cick the link http://www.umawylde.com/?p=25

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Permalink Reply by Sabrina Ghayour on January 11, 2010 at 8:28pm

Oooh Uma, i'm dead set against the Atkins. I lost 3 stone, then lost my gall bladder as i ended up with over 100 stones and was in hospital for 6 months on and off through all the havoc they wreaked. I do love Thai food, so thats a good reminder... Steakhouses like Gaucho grill are also pretty good... I think i've taken the advice of most peeps on here and abandoned the diet entirely, but thats not to say i wont be eating sensibly! I ADORE chillies... And even in the burning sun of Thailand would eat the volcanicly spicy Thai beef salad every day! I was lucky i got a few cookery lessons in Phuket so ive learnt a few tricks! See? Sometimes all it takes is someone suggestion to remind you of different foods you CAN eat! Right now i am utterly obsessed with Korean chilli paste and put it in everything and eat a TONNE of Kimchee alongside it. Korea was the only country in the far east where i lost weight, as i ate stacks of Kimchee pickle every day and generally lots of chilli. I'm totally hooked and beginning to think that Oriental food might be the way to go! I'm not a junk food lover or biscuit/chocs/crisps lover... My REAL problem is eating mindlessly, when im stressed/upset/busy. Just chomping/inhaling utter crap because its close to hand and not really knowing if im full or not and eating like every meal is my last! Its panic stations sometimes! When i eat sensibly, i find it so easy, so satisfying, so straightforward, without anxiety or torturous cravings... that i often wonder why i cant just continue like that all the time! Ohhhhhhhhh dear... Life eh???

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